In the Spirit of Health

MY RESTORATIVE YOGA CLASSES

If you are in or around Sherman Oaks, join our RESTORATIVE YOGA CLASSES every Monday and Wednesday from 2 pm - 3:15 pm. Relax, Restore, Release Deeply Held Stress. Call our office for more information and directions at 818-915-1220. 

Lighten Up the Season with Happiness

by Laurie Mazzarella

A couple of years ago, I had the opportunity to read a wonderful book by physician assistant and author, Blair Lewis. I had been thinking, searching and writing a lot about what happiness means to me and how I measure my happiness factor. Blair Lewis’ book, “Happiness the Real Medicine and How It Works” captured the essence of my search. He writes about how “happiness is our inherent nature”. It is inside each and every one of us! What then, keeps us from experiencing it fully?

Many of us search for happiness passionately. As a species, we invest a lot of time and money seeking it out. Whether we call it bliss, enlightenment or joy, we all want it, and we want more of it. Mr. Lewis’ book enlightens us to specific traits that happy people have. He also informs us of what specific blocks most of us have to experiencing these traits. Blair Lewis goes further by giving us specific natural tools that can help assist us through our blocks to happiness.

Blair Lewis takes us through his own journey towards happiness and shares a path that I expect most of us can personally relate to. Through his account, I was able to give structure to my own search. Additionally, since Mr. Lewis is a medical professional, he highlights the importance of happiness and its effect on the physical as well as mental and spiritual level. Holistic happiness! How much better does it get?

If you are interested in pursuing happiness or are wondering if you are happy at all, please read Blair Lewis’ book. It is inspiring, insightful and is sure to increase your happiness factor. If you know someone else who needs a little lightening up around this time of year, turn them on.

Start enjoying the light of the season. Look at the holiday lights. Enjoy the inspiration they bring and read this book. It will lighten up your search for true happiness.

Happy Holidays!

Gratitude List With A Twist

by Laurie Mazzarella

This is the third time I have published this article. I still think it is worth being reminded that we are important and we should honor and give thanksgiving for being who we are. If we don't respect ourselves, we can't possibly give true respect to anyone else. Enjoy!!

I think that making a gratitude list is one of the best ways to see how blessed my life is when I don’t feel that way. It has this healing effect that can take me out of doubt. A gratitude list basically shifts my attention from what I consider a challenge to what is working and wonderful in my life. I like that!

Recently, I created a twist to my gratitude list. I started to include myself. Now, my gratitude list has also become a great way to acknowledge myself and be thankful for being me. At times, it seems like I am looking outward for confirmation that I am doing things right or that I am being okay the way I am. But, alas! When I feel like I need acknowledgement or confirmation, I found I don’t have to go that far. I just need to start looking at the things that I really appreciate about being me.

Even though, this can be a bit awkward to start, it works wonderfully after getting the hang of it. I decided that there are so many things about me that I overlook or simply don't think much about. Sound familiar? I can sometimes leave myself out of my own life equation! Working with others in a service capacity often keeps my focus outside. I am very interested in assisting my clients, yet have to make a conscious decision to assist myself. This is what is so great about the gratitude list that includes self acknowledgment. I am included in my own equation and don’t need to rely on outside validation or confirmation.

I have found that there is so much that I am thankful for by just being me simply by taking a few minutes each day to acknowledge myself. My gratitude list has always been a reminder to give thanks for all the great people, places and things around me. And, now there is the added twist of being me! Who is on your gratitude list?

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Intuitive Business Basics Workshop for Independent Yoga and Fitness Professionals

 by Laurie Mazzarella

Please note price change.

If you are serious about growing your business, join us this Sunday, October 17, at 1 pm - 4 pm. It will be an investment in yourself and your business. Can you afford not to be there?

If you are in the Los Angeles area and are an independent yoga and/or other fitness instructor, you might be interested in my upcoming workshop, Intuitive Business Basics, where I will be discussing creative ways to build a foundation for your business. We will explore ways to breakdown old mindsets about business as we generate personal Mantra Statements; some people still call it a Mission Statement. We will write a Vision Plan, or Business Plan. We will determine our niche market a and come up with out of the box ways to market. And, of course, there will be much, much more. It will be fun!

This workshop is scheduled for Sunday, October 17, 2010 from 1 - 4 PM. Cost of the workshop is $60 in advance or $65 at the door. It will be held at Golden Monkey Healing, 13259 Moorpark St., Sherman Oaks, CA 91423. Call 818-915-1220 or emai:l Lauriemazz@yahoo.com

$60 in advance and $65 at the door.

Upcoming Workshop for Independent Yoga and Fitness Instructors

by Laurie Mazzarella

Please note price change.

If you are in the Los Angeles area and are an independent yoga and/or other fitness instructor, you might be interested in my upcoming workshop, Intuitive Business Basics, where I will be discussing creative ways to build a foundation for your business. We will explore ways to breakdown old mindsets about business as we generate personal Mantra Statements; some people still call it a Mission Statement. We will write a Vision Plan, or Business Plan. We will determine our niche market a and come up with out of the box ways to market. And, of course, there will be much, much more. It will be fun!

This workshop is scheduled for Sunday, October 17, 2010 from 1 - 4 PM. Cost of the workshop is $60 in advance or $65 at the door. It will be held in the San Fernando Valley. I will have the exact location in a couple of days.

The Healing Power of Nature

by Laurie Mazzarella

Lately, all I have wanted to do is get deep into nature and experience the nurturing, healing effects of it. From my computer, I stare out a large window and see trees. I feel lucky. I walk my dogs in a neighborhood where there is a lot of grass and more trees. I feel calm.

However, I want more. I want the deep peace I feel when I am in the quiet of a forest. It’s there that I can actually “feel” the trees as if they are embracing me. I feel connected. I experience the rhythms of the natural flow of nature. It is healing. It is deeply healing for me.

Is this something that you feel? Are you more joyful, content and whole when you are in nature? Or, is this just my experience? I decided to do a bit of research on nature and healing, and here is a bit of what I discovered.

In her article, "Nature’s Healing Effects on Your Body and Your Mind", Jennifer Edwards writes about forest environments being advantageous to acute emotions, in particular, chronic stress. She makes reference to a Japanese study that was released by the University of Kyoto and published in Public Health. This study talks about shrinrin-yoku, or forest air bathing and walking as methods that reduce stress. In light of this, Ms. Edwards, writes that the study points to the forest as a therapeutic landscape. Additionally, Ms. Edwards relays that after 911 there was a gut instinct to connect with nature and heal as was evidenced by the record number of New Yorkers who sought refuge in parks and botanical gardens.

Another author, Singh Vineet, wrote an article for Ezine, the online magazine. The article entitled, "Effects of Nature on Our Mental Health", made note of how currently there are hospital therapy gardens and wilderness trips for various populations suggesting that when we are connecting with nature we heal. Also, this suggests that we have become urban creatures and that we are disconnected from nature. Vineet’s article further conveys that research from Netherland and Japan found that people living closer to the green of nature lived longer and enjoyed a healthier life. And, further, according to this article, a leading researcher in the area of nature and healing, Roger Ulrich, discovered those people recovering from surgery who had a view of nature from their hospital beds recovered more quickly than the ones who did not have a view of nature. All of this makes sense to me!

I know that the forest or a lush park imparts a feeling of peace and wholeness to me. It is as if I become so aware of being part of the rhythm of nature I lose my “stressed” self to a bigger picture. I am not separated from the broader view and flow of nature. I am undeniably an integral part of it, and I feel the unity. I am nourished and comforted. Ultimately, it doesn’t matter how I explain it or what anyone else calls it, I like it. I crave it. I want to flow with it.

Now, I’d better get myself into it!

I'm Not Flexible. Can I do Yoga?

by Laurie Mazzarella

I think I hear this remark more than any other when I tell people I am a yoga instructor. My answer, from now on, is going to be telling the story of my first yoga teacher back in the 70's. She told those of us in her class that her first teacher was in a wheelchair. More than just about anything I have heard since, this drives home that yoga is not just about being flexible in body. It is about connecting intimately to your body and mind. It is honoring the wisdom of your own body and not thinking you should look, in a yoga asana or not, like the person in front of the class or next to you. Yoga is connecting with yourself. As the story of the yoga teacher in the wheelchair demonstrates, yoga is not only something practiced by the movement of the body, but is just as much a movement and connection with the mind. Maybe it is more important to say that flexibility of the mind will help you practice yoga.

When I first started yoga, there was less emphasis on the asanas, or poses. My first classes took place in a darkened upper hall at a small church in Venice Beach. We not only did yoga asanas, we chanted, meditated and focused on breath, or pranayama. We went to class for the inner connection with hopes of further acknowledging the connection to something much larger than ourselves. We did this whether we were able to do a perfect full shoulder stand, forward fold or fish pose. We moved in a darkened room without music in hopes of increasing our awareness of ourselves. Sometimes I miss this kind of  yoga class where the emphasis was on going inward. I think they were less intimidating than the way we have class a lot of times now.

So, remember the story of the yoga teacher in a wheelchair the next time you think you are not flexible enough to do yoga. I believe almost anyone who wants to practice yoga can practice yoga. There are many variations and adaptations to the physical poses just as there are to the mental, emotional and spiritual aspects of yoga. Flexibility helps, but maybe flexibility of our mind is more important than flexibility of the body.

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Loss, Grief and Changing Your Life

by Laurie Mazzarella

Letting Go and Moving On to New Opportunities

My heart has been heavy lately. I have let go of a lot of things in the past several years of my life. I continue to go through the grieving process, and I move forward. After the tears, the acceptance, the hope in my new situation, I am beginning to see new growth. But, it has been a painful ride getting here. By sharing my story of letting go, moving on and embracing change, I hope to inspire those of you who are going through loss (and thus change) whether it be job loss, marriage break up, foreclosure or anything that has forced you through painful change.

Because things are the way they are, things will not stay the way they are.
-Bertold Brecht

Things change all the time. We have the seasons that change. We change our minds, our jobs, our living space. Some of us reinvent ourselves, move away from home or decide to change careers. Of course, there are other changes like divorce, being let go from a job or loss of a loved one. All change requires that we let go of what we have become very accustomed to and leap, whether it be by choice or not, into territory unknown. We need to say goodbye to the familiar and hello to the new adventure. We suffer loss and grow as a result.

Saying goodbye to what we think provides us with comfort can be painful, but if we let ourselves move through the grieving process, it will be productive and we will change. There are at least five stages to the grieving process, and, actually, I have read models that use seven. Even though there is not a set pattern or order for any of these stages, it seems that most of us go through all of them at one time or another. So, if you are in a situation where everything is changing in your life and you are angry and depressed, it does not mean that you have skipped denial or bargaining, it just means that you are going through those stages first. Also, there isn’t any type of timeline for the stages of grief, everyone grieves in their own way and in their own time. Below, is a list of the stages.

5 Stages of Grief
1. Denial – This can’t be happening. Not accepting the loss/change
2. Anger – Blaming the situation or loss on ourselves or others
3. Bargaining – This stage finds us trying to delay the inevitable loss
4. Depression – Realizing the loss is realty and feeling powerless. May withdraw
5. Acceptance – It has happened. You can move forward from here

Even though, I rarely write about my personal life in my blog, I am going to share some things and how they relate to the grieving process and change. Two years ago I lost my father. Six months later, my boyfriend passed away. Several months later, a cockatiel that I had for 14 years was killed by two dogs. In the midst of all of this, I moved back to California after living out of state of 26 years. Not only did I lose people and pets close to me, I lost a particular lifestyle, career and familiarity that I had built up over 2 decades. When all of this was happening, I was in shock!! I did not want to deal with any of this. It was too overwhelming. I became numb with disbelief which was the denial stage.

Next, I blamed the loss of my boyfriend on his ex-wife and even myself for somehow not being able to forestall his death. Of course, none of this was really rational. I just needed something or someone to blame. I blamed the loss of my familiar living situation on the circumstances presented by moving from a smaller city back to a big city which I found difficult to deal with. The traffic was unmanageable. Dating was awful. My living space was too small. I was frustrated, critical of my new life and longed for my former situation which, of course, did not exist anymore. This was definitely the anger stage.

I did not readily let go of my ties to the state I had lived in for 20 years. I am only now, 2 years later, transferring my auto license and insurance to CA. I kept a “sometime” residence in my former state in case I just couldn’t move on. I had one foot in the past and one foot in the present not being able to fully let go and move on. This was bargaining.

Off and on for the last two years, I felt really down. I kept to myself a lot. Usually, a very social person, I found myself pulling inward, crying and not being very motivated. I was processing a lot and seemed to need the space to let things unfold and face the reality that two very important people in my life were gone, my dear bird was also gone and my life had changed radically. This time of sadness and withdrawal was the depression stage.

Finally, a hard look at the reality of my situation has forced me to accept the loss in my life, move forward, adapt and change. Only when I was able to fully let go of my life as it was, could I move on and open up to what life had in store for me. With every ending, a new beginning happens, and this means opportunity. Having been in a very high stress career before, I now find myself teaching yoga and enjoying it. I have reconnected with old friends and made some wonderful new ones. I am not totally “there”, but I feel like a new chapter has opened up in my life. The heaviness in my heart still appears now and then, but for the most part has lifted, so that I can truly see the light of change.

If your heart is heavy with loss and you are trying to make sense of your life and all the change, allow yourself to go through the stages of grief. Nurture yourself along the way and know that there is always light at the end of the dark tunnel and the change that is waiting for you can be a much brighter, more hopeful way of life. So, let go, trust that there will be a new beginning, and in your own time, move forward.

Yes! It's Okay to Say No to Clients

by Laurie Mazzarella

Know Your Values and Set Effective Business Boundaries

As every business owner knows, good business management is the foundation of running a business smoothly. What most of you also know is that personal energy management is a prerequisite for running a business (and life) more effectively. Those of us who are responsible for businesses, clients and employees can easily find ourselves in situations where we feel burned out, stressed and not in control of our lives. We may know the basics of living well like eating healthy foods, exercising and getting enough rest. However, I would like to add another factor to the list of basics, and that is boundaries.

Knowing your business boundaries is just as important and healthy as knowing your personal ones. Since many of us are on a 24/7 schedule, managing stress and walking a path of wellness can be a bit of a challenge. We are multitasking masters and dealing with many different types of personalities throughout the day. If we don't know where our boundaries are, it can spell B-U-R-N-O-U-T. There are many ways to say "no” and set a boundary, but first there is a need to determine when and why "no" would be the best practice.

How do you clarify your boundaries? First, take some time to discover those things that you truly value. This will help you know where you need to establish strategies in the structure of your business to avoid conflict. You will have definite parameters that you can work with. After investing some “clarifying your boundaries and values” time, start proactively setting those boundaries professionally. For example, if one of your values has to do with spending evenings with your family, consider taking an action like recording an outgoing phone message explaining to callers that if it is after 8 PM (or whatever time you would like), that you will be returning calls in the morning. And, be sure you follow through.

If you hear clients and employees complain that they are unable to reach you, try what a colleague of mine does. She records a different outgoing phone message each morning telling callers what her schedule of availability is for the day. She told me that her clients and employees were much more forgiving of reaching her voicemail and that callers were more assured that she would definitely be returning their call that day or the next. She dealt with less client and employee stress and found it worth the time it took each day to help her clients and employees feel more secure.

We know that we need to earn income, and that is what makes it hard to say no at times. However, we need to know what our priorities are and how we can honor them to preserve our own wellness and sanity. Taking some time to “know thyself” and institute some guidelines is crucial in any client-demand business. As a former Realtor and Realtor Coach, I know how hard it is to say no to certain clients. I wanted to please, and I needed the money. After running myself ragged, I found I had to find out what my business boundaries were and then fearlessly enforce them. I was a lot less stressed once I was able to do this. I found out that it was perfectly okay to say no to clients!